Sumatran orangutan Indah showed her 3-month-old daughter the ropes Tuesday (January 28) -- how to swing on them, that is.
Aisha is Indah's second baby, and true to orangutan form, the mother is keeping her baby close by. This serves doubly to allow her to keep an eye on her and to teach her the daily routines of an ape. Among the lessons Tuesday was how to turn a a stick into a spoon in order to scoop up her favorit treat -- banana-flavored baby food that zoo keepers have selectively hidden throughout the exhibit. .
From birth, orangutans instinctively know to tightly hold onto their mother's hair, until the mother feels comfortable enough to let them wander. Aisha still has a while to go until she steps out on her own.
The number of places orangutans can call home in the wild is quickly dwindling, due, in part, to rampant palm tree oil production. There are less than 7,000 Sumatran orangutans in the wild, making them critically endangered.
The San Diego Zoo's conservation and science work takes place locally at the zoo as well as at international field programs on six continents.
